The Brave and the Bold
by randomideaguy
Summary: Bruce Wayne goes to Metropolis and makes new friends and enemies along the way. Can he survive on his own? Who can he trust? Note: This takes place in my own version of the DC Universe - everyone's been around for about a year, but no one knows each other yet. Also looking for a beta reader.
1. Chapter 1: The Businessman

**Metropolis**

"It's rare that you go on an excursion like this, Master Wayne." Alfred said as he turned another corner. Bruce sat at the back of the limousine, bundled up in a different sort of suit than he was used to. He tugged absentmindedly at his tight collar.

"Well, I do try to keep a day job, Alfred." Bruce said with a small smirk, sipping some of the champagne from a nearby glass. Alfred glanced at him via the rear-view mirror.

"I daresay this one scares you more than your… nightly activities." Alfred said, smoothly turning another corner. Bruce shrugged.

"I may be a bit out of my depth. But Lucius said it would be best if I saw Luthor personally." Bruce explained, taking one last sip of the champagne and pushing it away from him. Alfred muttered something under his breath.

"Yes, Mr. Luthor seems to have quite the ego." Alfred responded. In the distance Luthor Tower started to come into view.

"Most billionaires do." Bruce responded with a grin. Alfred nodded, dropping the conversation. After a moment they arrived at Luthor Tower, with Alfred pulling into the front driveway. A chauffeur came to the car window, but Alfred shooed at him.

"Just making a drop off." The boy nodded and moved towards the back door, "I know what hooligans like you do with these types of cars." Alfred muttered mostly to himself. Bruce got out of the car, walking up to the window which Alfred rolled down.

"Not coming in?" Bruce asked. Alfred smiled.

"I thought I'd get a coffee, see if I can spot this 'Man in Blue' I hear so much about." Alfred said. Bruce frowned now.

"We're not here for sightseeing." Bruce responded. Alfred shrugged.

"You're not." Alfred responded. There was a beat. Bruce sighed.

"Alright. But stay close. I want to get back to Gotham as soon as possible." Bruce responded. Alfred sighed.

"Yes, sir, we shall relieve you of this sunny hell as soon as possible." Alfred quipped mostly to himself as he rolled up the window and began to drive away. Bruce looked up at the building and tugged at his collar once more.

He was about to walk into the building when a second car - a red corvette - sped through the turnabout and screeched to a halt mere inches from Bruce. He looked at the driver unflinchingly, an annoyed look on his face. The driver didn't seem to notice, as the blonde haired man hopped out like a schoolboy and tossed his keys to chauffeur.

"Just don't scratch it up to badly, kid." The man said as he slapped a bill into the kid's hand and walked past him without much more ado. With a scowl Bruce walked past, giving a polite nod to the chauffeur as he looked happily at the Benjamin Franklins in his hands. He found his way into the lobby.

And immediately ducked to the side, reaching out a hand as a fake indoor plant nearly fell on top of him. He grabbed it quickly and righted it, grumbling under his breath as he saw the blonde guy practically dancing through the lobby - he had probably knocked in over on the way out. Bruce followed the blonde man into a line in front of the receptionist. He couldn't help but overhear the loudmouth.

"Hello Madam, I'm Oliver Queen here to see Lex Luthor? He's the guy with his name on the building if you didn't notice." Oliver Queen announced himself to practically the whole lobby. Bruce couldn't help but put his face in his hands.

"Oh god, help me." He said, he thought quietly. But the blonde airhead whirled on him, eyeing him up in seconds and then a large smile crossing his face.

"Bruce Wayne!" Oliver said as he clapped a hand roughly on Bruce's shoulder. Bruce forced himself not to flip Oliver over his shoulder and across the lobby.

"Yes, and I think I overheard you were Oliver Queen?" Bruce asked politely. Oliver smiled as he turned the pair towards the elevator. The receptionist was left baffled behind them.

"Well god, I hope so, I'm pretty high volume in case you didn't notice. That's why Queen Industries will be a great asset in our joint project." Oliver said as he led Bruce and himself into the elevator. Where did he get a keycard? Bruce narrowed his eyes.

"Joint project?" Bruce asked, genuinely baffled as the door closed behind them. There was a beat. Oliver looked at him, some of his bluster fading now.

"Uh, yeah? I know you're not a very active CEO - more of a trust fund baby if I'm being honest, but who am I to judge - but surely they at least told you what you were doing facetime for?" Oliver asked. There was another beat, filled only with the dings as the elevator went up floor after floor.

"To be honest, I was under the impression that I was buying your company - in conjunction with Mr. Luthor, of course." Bruce replied. There was a silence now, more uncomfortable than before.

"I see." Oliver said simply. His smile was gone as he stared into space, his mouth askew in a sort of frown. The pair of billionaires spent the rest of the elevator ride in total silence. The elevator halted and there was a loud ding before the door opened. On the other side they were greeted with the sight of Lex Luthor, standing with arms wide open.

"Ollie! Brucey - is it okay if I call you Brucey?" Lex said with a wide grin and over the top enthusiasm.

"Actually he just told me he loves being called Brucey." Oliver said from next to Bruce, his frown gone and his grin from before back - it looked no different. Lex gestured past himself to a board room.

"I'm glad you could both make it, we have lots to discuss." Lex motioned towards a fully windowed room and a smooth oak table already full of legal papers and worse yet lawyers. Lex motioned to a stand next to the door.

"No reason business shouldn't be fun, too. Have some coffee!" Lex said as he stalked past the two and headed for his own seat at the table. He raised a hand and the lights dimmed as the television screen turned on - displaying a star shaped symbol prominently. Bruce uncomfortably sat down in one of the chairs, which frankly felt like a marshmallow. Oliver followed suit.

"Alright boys, so there's no reason to delay things any longer. Bruce, you're here because I need your help. You too, Oliver, just in a different way." Lex said with a flourish. He gestured to Bruce, who suddenly realized that there was a folder in front of him with his name on it. He grabbed it and flipped it open.

"Well, um…" Bruce began, clearing his throat, "As you can see here, Queen Industries is frankly failing. Stock prices are falling significantly, as are returns, and investors are pulling out of Starling City following the latest attack -" Bruce began to read his notes for the meeting.

"I can't control when terrorists decide to show up and start blowing stuff up!" Oliver cut in angrily now. Lex held up a hand.

"Now Oliver, no need to be brash - there is a silver lining here for you, if you would just hear us out." Lex said calmly. Oliver silenced for the moment, grumbling. Lex clapped his hands, cutting off Bruce's mumbling of facts and figures about Queen Industries failing financial situation.

"Now Bruce and I want to help you out. You're frankly bleeding cash, Mr. Queen. We can help out with that." Lex explained.

"With a small loan, of course." Bruce cut in matter of factly, apparently now understanding the situation. Lex nodded, smirking. Oliver just glared at him.

"Bruce here said you guys were planning on buying out my entire company." Oliver said. Lex paused for a moment, then just laughed. He shook his head.

"I wouldn't want to touch your company with a ten foot pole, Mr. Queen. No, Mr. Wayne and I are just interested in STAR Labs, which you have a controlling stake in." Lex replied, arms crossed.

"You would be compensated fairly." Bruce continued. There was a quiet moment and Oliver looked between the two businessmen as if something was donning. Now he laughed, although it was tinged with a bit of bitterness.

"Hell no." Oliver said. Lex frowned.

"No? Without us your company won't last another month." Lex said in response. Oliver leaned back, crossing his arms.

"I would rather lose my company than let the two of you gain STAR Labs." Oliver said, "Frankly the prospect is too dangerous. Wayne Corp here has military contracts out the wazzoo - I don't want the military pulling them from the wonderful medical work they're doing. And you, Lex. Please, you didn't expect me to see through this?"

Lex glared at Oliver, who was standing up now and grabbing his coat.

"Your lab got shut down barely a few months ago, don't think I have heard the stories -" Oliver said. Suddenly Lex's eyes bugged out, his face turning red in absolute rage as he stood up himself.

"Mr. Kent's unsubstantiated claims-" Lex began to rage when Bruce coughed rather loudly. The two angry businessmen stopped for a moment, both turning to look at Bruce. He gave a rather fatherly look to the two of them.

"These are rather serious claims, Mr. Queen. Ones that I am sure are untrue." Bruce began, pausing for Oliver to roll his eyes and Lex to began to breathe normally again, "Now my company has enough military contracts, so if promise that my portion of STAR Labs remains committed to their medical research…"

"Fat chance." Oliver cut in. Bruce held up a hand for him to pause.

"And we take a pause to finally put to bed these rumors about Mr. Luthor here?" Bruce let the implication hang in the air.

"This is ridiculous." Lex said, but he sat down now. Oliver stared at Bruce, as if seeing him for the first time.

"Then I might consider it. But I don't trust you or Luthor as far as I can throw either of you - I don't believe you'll ever do what you say." Oliver said. Bruce stood up now, and Oliver suddenly realized that the other businessman towered over him by a few inches. He stared up at Bruce.

"Then allow me to prove you wrong, Mr. Queen." Bruce said, a determined smile on his face. Lex was barely paying attention now, his seat turned sideways so that he could stare out the window. Bruce and Ollie turned to look at him. Lex finally sighed.

"Come see me when you're ready to make a deal." He said calmly. With that Bruce and Oliver walked out of the boardroom. They rode the elevator in complete silence. Bruce pulled out his phone.

"You just missed the show!" Alfred had texted Bruce, complete with a photo of a blue blur crossing the sky. Bruce smiled, shaking his head.

"I'm leaving LexCorp now. Let's pay a visit to Mr. Kent." Bruce texted back. There was only a short pause.

"On my way. And who is Mr. Kent?"


	2. Chapter 2: The Reporter

**Downtown Metropolis**

The door opened mere moments after Bruce had knocked on it. It swung wide open, revealing a well built young man with glasses and hair slightly frayed. He looked like he had just woken up, a cup of coffee in his hand and his shirt haphazardly buttoned up.

"Mr. Kent?" Bruce asked.

"Uh, yeah?" Clark replied, leaning so that he could see where Alfred was standing calmly behind Bruce. Suddenly a wide grin came across his face.

"You're Bruce Wayne! Please, come in." Clark stepped back, giving view of a spacious yet cluttered apartment. Clark glanced over his shoulder as Bruce came in, rushing to the couch to grab a pile of clothes and dirty dishes and making them disappear to elsewhere in the house.

"Sorry about the mess, it's not often that a story comes right up to my door." Clark was saying from his bedroom where he pretty much threw all of his stuff onto the bed and closed the door. Bruce just offered a small smile as he stepped inside and noticed that Clark was barefoot.

"That's actually what I came to talk to you about." Bruce was saying as Clark offered him a seat at the coffee table. Alfred declined, standing by the door with his arms crossed. Clark gave Bruce a questioning look.

"He's my bodyguard." Bruce said with a shrug.

"I know kung fu, hi-ya." Alfred deadpanned as he made a fake karate chop. Clark smiled, hands on his hips.

"Well, I'm sure you must be thirsty." Clark said.

"Tea. Earl Gray." Alfred replied with a smile before Bruce could respond. Bruce gave Alfred a dirty look, but the Butler just smirked in response. Clark returned with two cups of tea and his coffee balanced precariously on his arm.

"I used to be a waiter." Clark said in response to Bruce's look of surprise as Clark offered Alfred the cup of tea balanced on his forearm. Clark returned to the table and sat on the couch, offered a tea to Bruce as he sat on a side chair.

"So, I'm guessing you're here about the Luthor story." Clark said matter of factly as Bruce sipped his tea. Bruce raised an eyebrow, setting his tea down carefully.

"How did you know?" Bruce responded. Clark smiled, clearly glad that he had caught the billionaire off guard.

"I'm a reporter, Mr. Wayne. In fact I was just working on a piece about you - you're a bit of an enigma, to be honest. A reclusive CEO, only really appears at charity balls, of course your leaving Gotham to travel to Metropolis was going to raise some red flags: I'm sure you thought you were cautious, too. But the paparazzi is a great source of information." Clark explained. Bruce leaned back, impressed.

"And the Luthor part?" Bruce said. Clark shrugged, pushing up his glasses and taking a drink of his coffee.

"The story tells itself. Why else would you leave Gotham unless there was a big business deal on the line? Of course, I didn't think you'd come here, but I guess you're a man full of surprises." Clark said.

"You have no idea." Alfred said from his spot by the door with a smile, "The tea is wonderful, by the way." Clark offered Alfred a wide grin, turning back to Bruce.

"I know you've published a few pieces on Luthor; I'd like to know just what I'm getting into before I make a deal I might regret." Bruce said. Clark stared at him for a moment, perhaps sizing him up. Then with a grin he reached for his laptop on the coffee table, typing on it quickly and pulling up a file. He handed the laptop to Bruce.

"Sure thing, Bruce." Clark said. Bruce looked down at a veritable folder, full of dossiers, camera footage and the like. He scanned through a few of them.

"Now, Lex's lab got shut down a few months ago, totally fried in that attack. The hard drives at the computers there were totally fried, couldn't get anything off of them." Clark explained, motioning to a file at the bottom of the screen.

"You couldn't have gotten that legally." Bruce said without a glance at Kent. Clark shrugged.

"A reporter has his sources. And a billionaire CEO of a tech giant has his. I'm willing to bet you have something that could crack these hard drives, if you could get to them." Clark said with a smile. He pulled out his phone and typed in an address, tossing it across the room to Alfred who caught it with ease.

"That's where the lab used to be - it's a crime scene still, but like I said, I was doing a story on you before you flew in and I think you might have a friend that could help." Clark replied. Bruce raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Clark.

"I'm not sure what you mean by that." Bruce said. Clark just grinned.

"Come on; you know what I'm talking about." Clark paused, holding up two fingers to imitate a cowl on his head, "You disappear for years, return to Gotham within a few weeks of the Batman who runs the town with advanced tech. He would either need to steal it or have a financier who has a vendetta against criminals, and with what happened to your parents -" Clark was babbling now and Bruce placed a strong hand on Clark's arm.

"Mr. Kent, I don't know who you think I am, but I suggest you stop digging into my parents history." Bruce said with a glare. Clark paused, offering a sympathetic glance to Bruce.

"It's a touchy subject, I know." Clark said as Bruce stood up, brushing his suit of the crumbs that had inevitably jumped from the chair to his clothes.

"Thank you for your information, Mr. Kent. I suggest you cease following this story, though, for your own good." Bruce said as he stepped towards the door. Clark just grinned.

"You wouldn't believe how often people tell me that, Mr. Wayne." Clark said as he hopped up and walked towards the door to let the duo out. Bruce waited until he and Alfred had returned to the car before saying anything.

"If I go, it'll confirm his suspicions that I'm connected to the Batman." Bruce said, calmly. Alfred glanced at him via the rear view mirror.

"Yet, if Mr. Luthor is dirty, and he knows you're investigating him, he may very well move to destroy what little evidence remains of his wrongdoings." Alfred reasoned with him. Bruce nodded, slowly.

"You're right. Kent is a nobody. Luthor, on the other hand - he could be dangerous. We have to know what we're dealing with. Tonight." Bruce said, staring out the window as the sun was beginning to set. Perfect. Alfred sighed.

"You could always just buy your way to the files, no need to punch people." Alfred responded. Bruce was silent for a moment.

"The suit is in the trunk, of course." Alfred said with a sigh. Bruce offered him a small smile.

"You know me so well, Alfred."

 **LexCorp Tower**

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me." Lex said, turning his chair around in his large office. Across the table was a black woman in a business suit - Amanda Waller.

"Well, it could be mutually beneficial for us." Waller said, deadpan. She placed a phone on the table and slid it over to Lex.

"Will this be sufficient for your purposes?" She asked. Lex grabbed the phone, flipping through various pictures and files. Slowly a smile came across his face.

"Yes, these will do wonderfully." Lex said. Amanda stared at him.

"Don't forget, Mr. Luthor, my help is not free." Amanda said. Lex waved at her as if swatting a fly.

"You will be compensated, Ms. Waller." Lex said. Amanda reached out and grabbed the phone out of his hands. Lex looked up at her.

"I work for the government, Mr. Luthor. Funding is no issue. What I want from you is much more valuable… Your mind." Waller explained. Lex leaned back in his chair, intrigued.

"We saw the work your lab did over the last year -" Waller began to explain.

"Until Superman intervened." Lex practically spat out. Waller allowed herself a smile now.

"Yes, and consider CADMUS interested in your work. We do you this favor, and in the future you will lend us your scientific expertise." Waller said. Lex gestured to the phone Waller had taken from him.

"It looks like you are performing just fine without me." Lex said. Waller just laughed.

"We're just getting started, Mr. Luthor." She said, standing up with her briefcase now. Lex motioned to Mercy, who opened the door for Ms. Waller.

"The team will arrive within the hour, Mr. Luthor. And we will be watching, as well." Amanda said.

"So this is a test run for you." Lex said with a grin. Amanda just paused at the door, smiling and waving before she exited. Lex looked down at his phone as there was a buzz - it was a restricted number, but he knew it was Waller.

"Royal Flush Project Activated. Status: En Route."


	3. Chapter 3: The Arrow

**Former Luthor Labs**

"This place gives me the creeps." The voice came over the headset. Oliver Queen didn't immediately respond as he continued a sweep of the area with his bow and arrow at the ready. He reached a hand inside his hood to tap his comm.

"You should see it in person. Stay on task, Overwatch." He said. Oliver grabbed his head as a gust of wind came through the wrecked skyscraper. He frowned. You'd think they would've replaced the walls after they had been blown clean off. Oliver briefly admired a fairly large scorch mark.

"Arrow, the drive is fifteen feet ahead, in the corner. It probably looks like molten metal." Overwatch responded. The Green Arrow dutifully moved in the direction that she had told him to. He spotted the piece, a bulky former computer console with two lines melted right through it like it had been cut with a razor beam.

"Got it." Arrow said as he reached inside the conveniently made hole and ripped out the hard drive from within. He thought he heard a gust of wind behind him, but even so he turned around just to be careful.

"AH!" Overwatch yelled on Arrow's behalf as he quickly slung an arrow and pointed it at the shadowy figure in the corner of the room.

"You come here often?" Arrow said, masking his voice with a low growl. Two eyes flashed on the shadowy creature as he stepped out of the shadows.

"The hard drive - why're you after it?" The Batman said with a digitally distorted voice. The Arrow felt a shiver go down his spine. Even so, he smiled, lowering his bow.

"Batman? I'm working on a case to bring down Luthor. Look, I'm a huge fan, maybe we could -" Green Arrow was nerding out right before Batman crossed the room, attempting to sucker punch him. Despite his easy going demeanor, the Green Arrow was still a fighter. He ducked backwards, avoiding the punch and attempting to sling an arrow.

"I don't play well with others." The Batman said simply as he kicked Green Arrow's hand to the side, sending an arrow flying out into the open air. Green Arrow grinned as he backflipped to avoid a second kick from Batman, who was scowling at him now.

"Except for that kid in the red, right?" Green Arrow replied. The Batman didn't respond, reaching into his belt and throwing three little balls in the Green Arrow's direction. Green Arrow identified them pretty quickly, raising his bow and knocking the smoke grenades back in Batman's direction. However he failed to notice that this action caused him to back up right into a tripwire that Batman had apparently set without looking.

Did he plan this encounter!? Oliver thought in absolute surprise as he tipped over, beginning to fall off of the building. Before he could brandish and arrow and pull himself up, he found a black gloved hand reach out and grab him by the chest.

"Thanks." The Green Arrow got out before he was launched back into the abandoned building. He had just enough distance to knock another bow and launch it at the Batman as he tumbled towards him. This time the cowled hero didn't dodge, but in fact took the arrow head on with the gauntlets on his wrist.

"Smooth move." Green Arrow commented with a smirk as the arrow deflected - and then promptly exploded. Of course not enough to kill a man, but enough to knock him to his feet. Green Arrow crossed the room in moments and put a foot on Batman's chest, keeping him down. He slung an arrow and pointed it at the other vigilantes face.

"Now who are you and why are you investigating Luthor!" Green Arrow demanded. The Batman just returned his gaze with a blank stare, really more of an unamused look as his lips were drawn taut. Green Arrow shifted his bow slightly, pointing it at the inner side of one of Batman's elbows.

"Not a chattery one, eh? Well I know ways to make you talk, weirdo." Green Arrow said.

"This coming from the guy running around in a hood with a bow and arrow?" Batman responded with a smirk. Green Arrow threw up his arms.

"You're wearing a Bat costume, dude! You're one to talk!" The Green Arrow said, "Now if you're after Luthor, and I'm after Luthor, then it just makes sense that we would work together, capiche?" Batman didn't respond immediately, perhaps thinking about it. The wind made an ominous groan against the exposed building as a silence overtook the duo for a moment.

"You see, I'd love to, but I think you've got bigger problems." Batman replied. Green Arrow just raised an eyebrow.

"This guy is an ass, just shoot him already!" Overwatch said over the comms. Green Arrow followed Batman's gaze to behind him, as he realized that a slight shadow had overtaken the two. With the foot off of his chest, Batman slowly got to his feet as the two vigilantes saw another man standing the room. This one was tall and big, unnaturally so and with a "10" on his chest.

"I'm guessing this is how people say hi in this city?" Oliver quipped as he attempted to sling an arrow. He was unsuccessful, however, as Batman raised his leg and kicked Oliver square in the back, sending him hurtling towards the new player. Ten opened his huge arms and wrapped Oliver in a bear hug.

"Have fun." Batman waved at the Green Arrow, flashing a little look at the flash drive in his hand as he turned and ejected himself out the side of the building using his grappling hook.

"HEY!" Green Arrow yelled after Batman as he felt the gigantic arms tightened around his chest. With a grunt he kicked downwards, hitting Ten in the shins. This didn't seem to do much.

"Well this is great." Overwatch said over the comms. With much effort, Oliver reached into his belt and procured a knife, which he then hurtled towards Ten's abdomen with as much force as he could muster in the position he was in. The bigger masked man grunted, letting the Green Arrow go and stumbling back a few steps. He looked down at the knife in his chest as if he had just sprouted a third arm and slowly he pulled it out and got into a fighting stance.

"And now he's got a weapon." Green Arrow muttered as he launched himself back at the new foe. Meanwhile, outside of the building, Batman had already carried himself multiple blocks over.

"That wasn't very polite, sir." Alfred said over the comm.

"Couldn't afford him finding out my identity." Bruce said in response, backflipping over a building edge and then dramatically swinging through a Metropolis intersection.

"Too bad Ms. Gordon isn't here to hack that for you." Alfred said after a pause. Bruce nodded, now nearly halfway across the city. He landed in an alleyway and immediately darted into a limousine that was almost entirely concealed in shadows. Bruce quickly began stripping out of his cape and cowl as the tinted windows hid his activities - he tossed the flash drive to Alfred.

"Extract the contents and forward it to the burner - if this Arrow guy has a hacker, too, then I'll bet there's a tracker on the flash drive. Upload it from the burner to a public document - then it won't matter where I access it from." Bruce said as he was finishing stuffing his outfit into the secret compartment.

"Will do, Master Wayne." Alfred said as he was already plugging the hard drive into a strange looking block of a phone - which he had grabbed from a pile of identical looking ones hidden inside the front passenger seat.

"Done." Alfred said, turning to look at Bruce as he was applying some cologne. After a short nod, Alfred tossed the flash drive and the burner phone out of the window, right underneath the car wheel.

"I'll read it on my phone, but I'm certain we'll be paying a visit to Luthor regardless of what we find." Bruce said as he began slipping back into his suit pants.

"Roger that, setting a course for Luthor Tower… again." Alfred said as he began to drive off, crushing the burner phone and hard drive under the wheel of the car.


End file.
